Here is a crockpot recipe that can’t go wrong! This Olive Garden Minestrone Soup copycat recipe tastes just like you are having the soup, salad and breadsticks right in the Olive Garden! You will absolutely love how this slow cooker recipe tastes! 

Minestrone Soup

Benvenuti in una grande ricetta italiana! Welcome to a great Italian recipe!

Easy Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup small shell pasta *
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3/4 cup onion diced
• 1/2 cup celery sliced
• 1/2 cup carrots peeled, both quartered and sliced
• 1 zucchini quartered and sliced
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 x 14 ounce can diced tomatoes
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 1/3 cup tomato paste
• 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
• 1 x 15 ounce can small white beans drained and rinsed
• 1 x 15 ounce can kidney beans drained and rinsed
• 1/2 cup frozen cut green beans
• 2 cups baby spinach leaves
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley

Meal Preparation Statistics:

• Heat source: Crockpot
• Preparation Time: 9 minutes
• Pre-cook Time: 6 minutes
• Total Time: 15 minutes
• Servings: 6 to 8
• Crock cooking time: 4-6 hours on low or 2-3 hours on high

Preparation/Cooking Instructions:
First and foremost, you need to pre-prepare the shells first, and start all other cooking while the small shells are boiling. * = Bring them to a boil and make sure the pasta is not too hard and not too mushy, about 10 to 12 minutes. Set a timer and come back and pull the pasta out of the heat when the alarm goes off. If you prefer ala dente, pull the pasta out a little early for that firm appeal. Prepare all your other ingredients as described, making sure of the following: As you start, dice your onion. Slice your celery. Peel, quarter and slice your carrots. Quarter and slice your zucchini. The more you cut, the less texture. Add your olive oil in a large pot over medium high heat, while adding in your onion, celery, carrots and zucchini to the pot. Add in your minced garlic and season the vegetables with the amount of salt and pepper that you prefer, paying particular attention to your family’s preference and individual needs. Open your can of tomatoes and add them in. Add in your vegetable broth, tomato paste and Italian seasoning, then open and add your white beans, kidney beans, green beans to the pot. Stir in your spinach leaves and then sprinkle your parsley. * = Finally, add in the small shell pasta. I find that by cooking the shell pasta on the side, that the pasta holds composure and has that great texture that you are so used to when getting the Minestrone soup while visiting Olive Garden. Keep in mind that the longer the ingredients cook, the less coarse the texture will be. The optimal cooking temperature is 170° for at 4 hours. You can speed it up a little at best by increasing the temperature a little, but the warm, creamy and robust flavor attained at the Olive Garden can only be attained by following the directions explicitly. Stir well and place lid on. Leave this cook in the crock pot for the whole term of cooking. Add an extra 10-15 minutes of cooking time every time you open the lid and stir. You can cook on high for as little as 3 hours or lower setting for between 6-8 hours. This is a great item to cook on low and come home to after work. In preparation for serving, you need to add the cream (or evaporated milk) about 30 minutes before serving time. The optimal serving temperature is 170°, so if you cooked it at a higher temperature to speed the process, you need to make sure that the serving temperature is in that range to have it taste right, and for safety. Serve in your soup bowl or cup.

Nutrition Information:

The following ingredients are not only garnished but some people prefer more or less of these:

• Coarse pepper out of a grinder
• Romano cheese grater

Add the two items to your heart’s content!

Now the real kicker. You may or may decide not to do this–and this is not in the recipe from Olive Garden, but it makes my bowl of Minestrone Soup one of my all time favorites: Add in:

• 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice (the type meant for cooking or at the tavern)

Don’t cook the lemon juice! Add this while on the table, at the same time as the cheese and/or pepper. you don’t think it is great, stick to the original recipe!

Now the primo appetizing soup is ready to be served! Salad and breadsticks, optional!! Mangia mangia!!

You are ready to E-N-J-O-Y !!!

The Delicious Minestrone Soup Recipe

Disclosure: Even though I worked at the Olive Garden, I worked as a server; and did not have access to their proprietary recipe. This recipe was referred to me from a friend, and I made this to her specifications. I agreed with her that it tasted like it was made at the Olive Garden. The recipe may differ from theirs, but it sure does taste, in my opinion, like the real McCoy!